November 16, 2024

Hook

Stormwatch VIII [Gilded Slumber] || Ley'Ork, Cahyali

Plot Synopsis

The party meets up again with the Ashes of Dreams party, and puts a plan together to get into Sparkpoint. First, one group will make a distraction near a pair of supply warehouses to draw security forces away as a group simultaneously teleports down and works on getting in. [GM Note: I ran the group that teleported straight in. This group was mixed between Stormwatch and Ashes of Dreams players.]

Upon arriving in, the party notices heavy security on the levels outside and a mech that they just barely avoid. They make their way down a stairwell and arrive at a concrete blast door locking off sublevel 20. Stymied there for a moment, Vulvenaar has the idea to go through the vents. Ildrei uses Resonance to shatter the optics of a patrolling automated mech, blinding it, and they take advantage of this opportunity to open the blast doors and lock it outside.

They begin to explore, finding signs of a particularly brutal test inside a small room, as well as two consumable unit repositories. A hallway to the right leads to a large room with several horrifying-looking mutated humanoids with bluish-purple nerve fibers coming out of their backs. One of them is clutching a keycard.

They come up with a plan to release the mutant and try to put it to sleep immediately, then steal the keycard from its hand before putting it back in containment. This plan goes off without a hitch, although the mutant nearly wakes fully up and lunges at the party. They then continue down to a security camera room, then down to a small monitor powered by an external power source. This monitor station has a keycard inside, and seems to be locked down by several types of units. The party sacrifices 10 EU, DU, PU, and 40 SC, then is able to obtain the keycard.

They assist the other half of the group and collect four keycards, then use these to proceed down to the elevator - which is surrounded with growing blue-purple nerve fibers that react to them passing by. They proceed down to the hangar holding Slipstream, with only a few minutes left until launch.

The Ashes of Dreams party splits off at this point, and the reunited Stormwatch party proceeds towards a door near the ribcage, which is glowing with an intense icy blue light. A man exits the ship compartments near that area: seemingly, Jonathan Shields, Jessie’s brother. He says that two of his siblings are on the ship, and his mother has fled to Jaern along with his youngest sister. Then, to Jessie’s dismay, Jonathan reveals himself to not be Jonathan at all, but is in fact Byron, Jessie’s cruel father, in Jonathan’s body. He claims Jonathan gave his body up willingly, then mocks Jessie and returns into the ship. The party boards with three minutes to launch, and Vulvenaar calls for Akh Ranh.

With a mighty roar, the ancient dragon arrives in the Slipstream tunnels, accompanied by a horde of wyverns thousands strong. As he grabs Slipstream with his claws, the ship powers up, and begins to flicker in and out of the material world…

Noteworthy Postgame Events